Lunar enthusiasts in the UK and across the world are to be graced with a rare astronomical treat this weekend. The captivating partial solar eclipse will see the moon pass between the sun and the earth.
The partial solar eclipse will coincide with the second of five new supermoons for 2025 which is renowned for appearing bigger and brighter than a typical full moon. The supermoon will take place this weekend during the Moon’s new phase when its night side is directly facing Earth meaning it will be completely dark and only visible in regions where the night sky isn’t drowned out by artificial illumination on Earth’s surface.
Supermoons are not easy to see, because the new Moon is the dark phase of the Moon, when its night side turns towards Earth, and all we can see is a dim shadow against the sky, if we see anything at all.
NASA calls this the “invisible” phase of the moon because the illuminated side of the moon is facing the Sun and the night side is facing Earth.
A supermoon occurs when the moon reaches its closest point to Earth, which is about 226,000 miles.
On the morning of Saturday March 29 the miraculous celestial event will make the moon appear like a set of ‘devil horns’’ or the grin from a ‘Cheshire Cat’ for some lucky observers.
The first – and only – solar eclipse of 2025 will take place on March 29, beginning at 8:50am GMT (4:50am EDT) and concluding at 12:43pm GMT (8:43am EDT). The maximum eclipse will occur at 10:47am GMT (6:47am EDT).
At its maximum around 30%-40% of the sun will be covered, it will look as though the moon’s silhouette is taking a bite out of the solar disk.
The shadow cast by the Moon will sweep up from northwest Africa, across the northeastern US, eastern Canada, Greenland, and parts of Europe and Russia.
The best place to see it will be the northwest of Scotland, where 47.8% of the sun will be covered by the moon. Whereas, those in the southeast of England will get the smallest eclipse, only 28.1% of the sun will be hidden by the moon.
Observers in far north Quebec, Canada, will experience the deepest eclipse at 93% obscuration.